Charles Darwin Facts For Kids | The Greatest Naturalist Of All Time

Charles Darwin was a British geologist and a naturalist. He is widely known around the world for his theory of evolution. He presented this theory in his book named “On the Origin of Species” in 1859. He developed his keen interest in natural life while still in his early years. The most famous journey of Charles Darwin was on his HMS Beagle. He started his journey on December 27, 1831 and returned after 5 years. Now let’s have a look at some more Charles Darwin facts for kids.

Charles Darwin Facts For Kids

Full Name: Charles Robert Darwin

Date of Birth: February 12, 1809

Place of Birth: Shrewsbury, United Kingdom

Age: 73

Number of Children: 10

Date of Death: April 19, 1882

Place of Death: Downe, Kent

Family of Charles Darwin

The name of the location in Shrewsbury where his family house is situated is called Mount House.

The name of his father was Robert Darwin. He was a well-off medical doctor.

The name of his mother was Susannah Darwin.

He had one brother and four sisters.

The name of his elder brother was Erasmus Darwin. He was 5 years older than Charles Darwin.

The name of his grandfather was Erasmus Darwin. He was also a well-known naturalist, poet and physiologist of his time. He was also an abolitionist.

The name of his maternal grandfather was Josiah Wedgwood. He too was a famous British potter and abolitionist of his time.

His mother died in July 1817.

Married Life of Charles Darwin

The name of his wife was Emma Darwin. She was Charles’ first cousin too and a very attractive and intelligent woman. Her original name was Emma Wedgwood. Darwin was 9 months younger than her.

Darwin proposed his first cousin Emma on November 11, 1839. She both fell in love afterwards.

Emma and Darwin got married in Maer on January 29, 1839.

The name of his eldest daughter was Anne Elizabeth (Annie). She died on April 23, 1851 due to scarlet fever. She was only 10 years old at the time.

Annie was very dear to Charles Darwin. When she died in 1851, Darwin felt so upset that he threw away his beliefs on Christianity and did not go to Church for a while.

Early Years

He was interested in natural history even when he joined a day school in 1817. He was only 8 years old at the time.

The name of his teacher and friend in the early years of his life was Professor John Stevens Henslow.

On January 4, 1837, he wrote his first article and presented it to the Geological Society of London.

He became a member of Council of Geological Society on February 17, 1837.

He was made a Fellow of the Royal Society on January 24, 1839.

Final Years and Death

His most famous book on theory of natural selection was published on November 24, 1859. The name of this book was ‘On the Origin of Species’.

The doctors spotted a disease in Darwin’s heart in 1882. They called this disease ‘angina pectoris’.

He breathed his last in the Down House on April 19, 1882.

There are at least 120 species whose names are set after Charles Darwin.

In London’s Natural History Museum, a magnificent statue of Charles Darwin is built to honor him.

While on his second journey on Beagle, Charles Darwin came across 15 species of birds. Today, these species are named Darwin’s Finches. They are also known as Galápagos finches because Darwin discovered them in Galápagos Islands.